The new wave angst of The Tubes, the band shaped in Phoenix who relocated to San Francisco, was a little bit too edgy for the Billboard Hot 100 of 1977. But on November 19, 1977, they invaded the UK charts with the satirical “White Punks On Dope.”
The track stands as one of many enduring anthems of that new wave interval, even when it was already two years outdated, coming from the Tubes’ self-titled debut album of 1975. It was written by the band’s Bill Spooner and Roger Steen with Michael Evans, and the album produced by longtime rock studio figurehead Al Kooper.
“Some took ‘White Punks on Dope’ literally,” the Tubes’ drummer Prairie Prince advised triblive.com in October 2018. “We were also advocating anti-drugs as well. A lot of our friends died and overdosed and passed out, and lot of rock idols we knew were passing in front of our eyes. We had to make a statement.”
Tubes, Pistols, Stranglers and…ABBA
As ever, it’s amusing to recall the musical local weather in Britain in these punky days. Released on A&M – the identical label that had signed after which dropped the Sex Pistols inside the house of every week some eight months earlier – “White Punks On Dope” entered the chart because the Pistols descended the Top 40 with “Holiday In The Sun,” as did the Stranglers with “No More Heroes.” But these new wavers have been within the minority, as ABBA continued at No.1 with “The Name Of The Game,” Queen rose to No.2 with “We Are The Champions,” and the Top 10 included Status Quo, Rod Stewart, and the Bee Gees.
Listen to uDiscover Music’s The Tubes Best Of playlist.
“White Punks On Dope” climbed to No.28 within the UK, which was the Tubes’ highest-ever singles inserting, however they’d take pleasure in a fleeting Top 40 look with the next stay album that contained the track. What Do You Want From Live was launched in February 1978 and recorded at Hammersmith Odeon in London.
Buy or stream “White Punks On Dope” on the album The Tubes.